‘THE CLOCK IS TICKING’
BRITS CROSSING TO SOUTH FOR TRIPS COULD BE IN FOR A NASTY SHOCK, MAY BE DENIED ENTRY FOR ‘OVERSTAYING’ IF SOUTH IMPLEMENTS 90-DAY VISITOR RULE
BRITISH residents in the TRNC who have taken advantage of last week’s reopening of the checkpoints to cross to the South and back could be in for a shock come September.
Many have been chancing their luck that Greek Cypriot immigration officials will not impose a 90-day limit on their stay in the South, which is now applicable to Brits as non-EU citizens following the end of the Brexit transitional phase.
Because the Greek Cypriot side does not recognise the TRNC as a separate state, it regards time spent in the North as time spent in the “Republic of Cyprus”.
One person, who recently crossed at Pile via the British Sovereign Base Area (SBA), said that they had been informed about the 90day rule by SBA police.
They said the clock “keeps ticking” after returning to the TRNC and that the only way to stop it is by leaving the island via a port in the South. Some Brits have taken out a residency permit in the South as well as in the TRNC to avoid such problems.
Another British passport holder, crossing from the North to the South via Metehan in Lefkoşa, said they too had been warned by South Cyprus border officials about the 90-day limit.
Others said they had had their British passports scanned, but not stamped with a visa.
Peter Wilkins, chairman of the British Residents Society (BRS), told Cyprus Today that he was looking into the incidents and had raised the issue with the British High Commission (BHC) in South Nicosia.
He said that those who “overstay” by breaking the “90 in 180 day rule” could be banned from entering the South for three years, but dismissed claims by some that British people could be fined or deported by the Greek Cypriot authorities.
“What the BHC has told us is that they hadn’t had time to set things up and put practices into place yet, but as we go further into it we will see,” he said.
“The BHC will want to make sure, but we don’t know how things will be, there is no confirmation. We don’t know what they are going to do.”
He continued: “The next three months will be interesting; we are going to see what the situation is . . . We don’t know which way it’s going to go.”
Mr Wilkins added that as the checkpoints have only recently been reopened and there are new arrangements in place, officers on the southern side of the border are still getting accustomed to the new rules.
This could lead to people being told different things by “uninformed” immigration teams.
But Mr Wilkins warned that Greek Cypriot officials retain the right to make British citizens “go through the visa process”.
He said that while he wanted to be “positive” he urged British residents to exercise “caution” if planning to cross the “Green Line” and not to “take anything for granted”.
Mr Wilkins also referred to the recent general election in South Cyprus, which saw the far-right Elam double its number of seats in parliament.
“Elam, who are nationalists, don’t look at us [British TRNC residents] in a favourable light, they see us as living illegally in properties that may or may not have belonged to Greek Cypriots,” he said.
“People should know that the right of free passage is gone. They should understand the 90 in 180 day rule [applies], unless they apply for residency [in the South].
“You can be residents on both sides, it is possible but expensive.
“Nobody knows if on any given day, [there will be] a [Greek Cypriot] immigration officer with a headache or in a bad mood, or if they are grumpy. My advice is to be polite and never argue.”
Mr Wilkins added that he has stopped using airports in the South. “I only fly from Ercan,” he said. “It’s going to get worse.”
WHAT DOES UK TRAVEL ADVICE SAY?
The UK’s official travel advice for “Cyprus” states that British citizens can “travel to Cyprus for up to 90 days in any 180-day period without a visa”.
“This applies if you travel as a tourist, to visit for family or friends, to attend business meetings, cultural or sports events, or for short-term studies or training,” the advice says.
With regards to North Cyprus, the advice says: “The Republic of Cyprus does not recognise the self-declared ‘Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ in the north of Cyprus, nor residence permits issued by the administration there.
“The Republic of Cyprus authorities may count time spent in the north of Cyprus towards the 90 day visa free total. If you overstay, you may potentially face difficulties at the airport on exit or re-entry.”
A separate section on “local travel” states that “even when the crossing points are operating under normal conditions, British and other foreign nationals who have entered Cyprus through the north (such as via Ercan airport) are considered by the Government of the Republic of Cyprus to have entered Cyprus through an illegal port of entry”.
It adds that the “Government of the Republic of Cyprus may fine you for illegal entry if you cross into the south, or refuse you entry into or exit from the Republic, or prevent crossing at the boundary with the north”.